JP2001313130A - Connector grouping contact - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connector that makes groups or blocks of contacts for each circuit. SOLUTION: A plurality of contacts having a terminal portion for connecting with the connecting opposite and a contact portion for connecting with the opposite connector are held in an insulator 28. In its process, a group of contacts 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 are formed in plurality which are collected for each usage of the contact inside one engagement portion 26 for engaging with the opposite connector. By this arrangement, a plurality of contact groups are to be connected with opposite connector in one lot and each contact group is also made capable of connecting with opposite connector respectively.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector having contacts for connecting to a large number of circuits.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Information processing devices such as personal computers handle various kinds of signals. In order to input and output those signals, as shown in FIG.
The personal computer 10 includes, for example, a plurality of connectors (represented by 11, 12, and 13) on the back surface.

The connector 11 is for connecting to the connector 15 of the docking station 14 or the connector 17 of the port replicator 16. Connector 12,
13 is a peripheral device such as a CD drive or a DVD drive 18
For connecting to the connector 19 of FIG. In addition, the docking station 14 and the port replicator 16
Is a connector 2 that can be connected to the connector 19 of the peripheral device 18.
1 and 22 are provided.

Thus, the personal computer 10 is configured to be able to connect various types of peripheral devices. Therefore, various types of signals are supplied to the connectors 11, 12, and 13.

[0005]

However, since the connectors 11, 12, and 13 of the personal computer 10 are not classified according to the types of signals, wiring to the connectors 11, 12, and 13 is difficult.

In the case of personal computers made by different manufacturers, even if the same connector is used, the pin assignment may be different for each manufacturer. Inconvenience had occurred.

In addition, when it is desired to connect only to a certain circuit block, it is necessary to separately mount a dedicated connector on a personal computer, so that there is a drawback that the connector cost and the mounting cost are high.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a connector which solves the above-mentioned disadvantages by collecting and grouping or blocking each circuit.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus provided with the above-described connector.

[0010] Still another object of the present invention is to provide a mating connector to be connected to the above-described connector.

[0011]

According to the present invention, there are provided a plurality of contacts having a terminal portion for connecting to a connection partner and a contact portion for connecting to a mating connector, and an insulator holding the contacts. In the connector including, having one fitting portion to fit to the mating connector,
A plurality of contact groups formed by collecting the contacts for each application are formed inside the fitting portion, and the plurality of contact groups can be collectively connected to a mating connector. A connector characterized by being connectable to the connector is obtained.

The interface circuit is connected to a circuit board having a large number of interface circuits, the interface circuits are divided into a plurality of circuit groups, and the contacts of the contact group are connected corresponding to the interface circuits of the circuit group. It may be.

According to the present invention, an information processing apparatus provided with the above-described connector is obtained.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A connector according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Parts similar to those in FIG. 23 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

In FIG. 1, a personal computer 1
0 is provided with one connector 23 on the back surface. Three peripheral devices 18 are shown. The connector 24
Is also shown.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the connector 23 has one conductive tubular fitting portion 26 to be fitted to a mating connector (to be described later), and this fitting portion. A large number of conductive contacts 27 inside 26 and an insulator 28 holding these fitting portions 26 and contacts 27
And Each contact 27 has a terminal 27a for connecting to a circuit board 29 to be connected to and a contact 27b for connecting to a mating connector. The circuit board 29 is a housing 30 of a personal computer.
It has been attached to. The contacts 27 include a signal contact and a ground contact.

A large number of contacts 27 are gathered for each application inside the fitting section 26 to form a plurality of contact groups 31, 32, 33, 34, 35. These contact groups 31, 32, 33, 34, 3
5 may consist of contacts 27 collected according to the type of signal to be handled. Therefore, in the following, the contact groups 31, 32, 33, 34, 35
P interface unit, USB interface unit, I
The IEEE 1394 interface unit, the power supply interface unit, and the legacy interface unit may be referred to respectively.

As shown in FIG. 4, a large number of terminal holes 37 for inserting and connecting the terminal portions 27a of the contacts 27 are formed in the circuit board 29. These terminal holes 37
Like the contact 27, it is collected for each application and divided into a plurality of groups. There is a reasonable distance between groups. This means that many interface circuits (not shown) provided on the circuit board 29 are divided into a plurality of circuit groups. Therefore, the contacts of each contact group are connected corresponding to the interface circuits of each circuit group. In the case of an image processing system, TMD
There are S, GVIF, LVDS, LDI, and VDA, and a contact group is provided corresponding to these.

The connector 23 includes a mating connector as described below and a plurality of contact groups 31 and 3.
2, 33, 34, and 35 can be collectively connected, and the connector 19 of the peripheral device 18 can be connected to each contact group as a mating connector. An example of the connector 19 of the peripheral device 18 in that case is shown in FIG.
This connector 19 is connected to the legacy interface unit 35
It is connected to.

The docking station 14 will be described with reference to FIG. 6 together with FIG.

The docking station 14 has a connector 41 serving as a mating connector for connecting to the connector 23 of the personal computer 10. The connector 41 includes one conductive tubular fitting portion 46 fitted to the fitting portion 26 of the connector 23 of the personal computer 10, a large number of conductive contacts inside the fitting portion 46, It includes these fitting portions 46 and insulators 48 holding the contacts. Each contact has a terminal portion for connecting to the circuit board of the docking station 14 and a contact portion for connecting to the contact 27 of the connector 23. Like the contacts 27 of the connector 23 of the personal computer 10, a large number of contacts are gathered for each application inside the fitting portion 46 to form a plurality of contact groups. The positions of these contact groups are determined by the contact groups 31, 32,
It is set corresponding to the positions of 33, 34 and 35.

Circuit board 4 of docking station 14
In FIG. 9, as shown in FIG. 7, a large number of terminal holes 51 for inserting and connecting the terminal portions of the contacts 47 are formed.
These terminal holes 51 are collected for each application and divided into a plurality of groups, similarly to the contacts 47. There is a reasonable distance between groups. This means that many interface circuits (not shown) provided on the circuit board 49 are divided into a plurality of circuit groups. Therefore, the contacts of each contact group are connected corresponding to the interface circuits of each circuit group.

Referring to FIG. 8 together with FIG. 1, the port replicator 16 will be described.

The port replicator 16 has a connector 52 that functions as a mating connector for connecting to the connector 23 of the personal computer 10. The connector 52 includes one conductive tubular fitting portion 56 fitted to the fitting portion 26 of the connector 23 of the personal computer 10, a large number of conductive contacts inside the fitting portion 56, This includes the fitting portion 56 and the insulator 58 holding the contact. Each contact has a terminal portion for connecting to the cable 59 and a contact portion for connecting to the contact 27 of the connector 23. Like the contacts 27 of the connector 23 of the personal computer 10, the large number of contacts 57 are gathered for each application inside the fitting portion 56 to form a plurality of contact groups. The positions of these contact groups are set corresponding to the positions of the contact groups 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 of the personal computer 10.

The connector 2 provided on the external monitor 25
4 also has the same configuration as the connector 52 of the port replicator 16 and can be used as a mating connector.

The connector 52 described above can also be used when the connector 23 provided in the personal computer 10 is a board-mounted connector 23a as shown in FIG. FIG. 9A shows a state before the connector 52 is connected to the connector 23a, and FIG. 9B shows a state where the connector 52 is connected to the connector 23a.

The connector 52 described above can also be used when the connector 23 provided in the personal computer 10 is a relay mounting type connector 23b as shown in FIG. FIG. 10A shows a connector 52 and a cable or F
10B shows a state before the PC and the connector 61 are connected to the connector 23b, and FIGS. 10B and 10C show a state where they are connected to the connector 23b.

Various connection examples will be described with reference to FIGS.

When transmitting a signal using the connector 52 and the connector 23a or 23b described above, there are a case where a signal is relay-connected as shown in FIG. 11 and a case where the signal is transmitted via a board as shown in FIG. In the former case, by inserting an appropriate circuit block including the connector 61, it is possible to easily prevent disturbance of impedance due to crosstalk between board patterns and the like. In the latter case, the intervals between the substrate patterns 62 are appropriately set so that the impedance is not disturbed due to crosstalk or the like. 63,
64 is a relay connector, 65 is a transmission chip, and 66 is a cable.

Further, as shown in FIG.
Can be made into a structure in which the connectors 23a and 23b are integrated to enable both board mounting and relaying.

Further, as shown in FIG.
It is also possible to design a structure in which a plurality of circuit blocks or connectors 61 are connected.

FIG. 15 shows a receptacle as a modification of the connector 23 of FIG. In this receptacle,
Similarly to the connector 23 of FIG. 2, a plurality of contact groups formed by collecting contacts for each application are formed inside the fitting portion 26. According to this, these contact groups can be collectively connected to a plug, and further, each contact group can be connected to a plug.

FIG. 16 shows a plug as a modification of the mating connector 41 of FIG. In this plug also, similarly to the mating connector 41 in FIG. 6, a plurality of contact groups are formed inside the fitting portion 46 in which contacts are collected for each application. According to this, these contact groups can be collectively connected to the receptacle, and also can be connected to the receptacle for each contact group.

The receptacle shown in FIG. 15 and the plug shown in FIG. 16 can be fitted and connected to each other, and the number and arrangement of the contact groups are different from those of the connector 23 shown in FIG.
Is different from the mating connector 41 of FIG.

FIG. 17 shows a plug for cable connection as a modification of the connector 52 of FIG. In this plug for cable connection as well, a plurality of contact groups formed by collecting contacts for each application are formed inside the fitting portion 56, similarly to the connector 52 of FIG. According to this, these contact groups can be collectively connected to the mating connector, and each contact group can also be connected to the mating connector. The connector of FIG. 17 differs from the connector 52 of FIG. 8 in the number and arrangement of the contact groups.

A modification of the mating connector will be described with reference to FIG. The illustrated mating connector includes a number of contacts 72 having a connection portion 71 for connecting to a cable (not shown), an insulator 73 holding these contacts 72, and a cable arraying portion 74 holding and arranging the cables. A metal location plate or locator 75 is provided. Locator 75
Is a press-fit portion 76 for press-fitting a cable shield.
And a connection portion 77 for connecting to a cable conductor.

Referring to FIG. 19, another modification of the mating connector will be described. Parts similar to those in FIG. 18 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted. The illustrated mating connector further includes a ground plate 78. The ground plate 78 has a connecting portion 79 for connecting to the locator 75.

Another modification of the mating connector will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 18 and FIG.
The same parts as in FIG. 9 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. In the illustrated mating connector, a locator 75 and a ground plate 78 are integrally formed. That is, FIG.
The ground plate 78 bent at a right angle to the locator 75 as shown in FIG. 1 is further folded back as shown in FIG. This locator 75 and ground plate 78
Are assembled to a mating connector as shown in FIG.

In the mating connector described with reference to FIGS. 18 to 22, similarly to the mating connector 41 of FIG. 6, a plurality of contact groups formed by collecting contacts for each application are formed inside the fitting portion. are doing. According to this, it is possible to connect these contact groups collectively, and also possible to connect to each contact group.

According to the various embodiments described above, the following advantages are expected.

By dividing one connector into a plurality of circuit blocks, the wiring on the substrate is facilitated, and the cost is reduced. The relay connection is facilitated, the transmission characteristics are improved, and the productivity (yield) is improved, so that there is a cost reduction effect. The connection of only a certain circuit block can be made by using a dedicated connector. Since the dedicated connector becomes unnecessary, the cost of the connector, the cost of the board, and the cost of mounting are reduced, and the cost is reduced. By relay connection of the personal computer side, impedance matching becomes easy especially in high-speed serial signal transmission, and the transmission characteristics are improved. Therefore, the cost of the substrate is reduced, the yield is improved, and the cost is reduced.

An application example of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

The cable connector 82 connected to the display device 81 has a plurality of contact groups formed by gathering contacts for each application inside the fitting portion, similarly to the connector shown in FIG. On the other hand, DVC83
, A connector 86 provided in a game device 85, and a connector 88 provided in a mobile phone 87,
It can be connected to each contact group of the cable connector 82. According to this, the display device 81
To one cable connector 82 connected to the
And the game device 85 and the mobile phone 87 can be selectively connected. Therefore, the connector equipment of the display device 81 can be simply configured.

Note that here, the display device and the DVC
In the above description, the present invention is applicable to various other types of connections.

[0045]

As described above, according to the present invention,
It is possible to provide a connector that is grouped or blocked for each circuit, an information processing apparatus including the connector, and a mating connector connected to the connector.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view for explaining a use mode of a personal computer provided with a connector according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

2A and 2B show a connector of the personal computer used in FIG. 1, wherein FIG. 2A is a front view, FIG.
(C) is a right side view.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the connector of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of only a main part of a circuit board to be connected to the connector of FIG. 2;

5A and 5B show an example of a connector of the peripheral device in FIG. 1, wherein FIG. 5A is a front view and FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view.

6 shows a connector of the docking station used in FIG. 1, (a) is a front view, (b) is a plan view,
(C) is a right side view.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of only a main part of a circuit board to which the connector of FIG. 6 is connected;

8 shows a connector of the port replicator used in FIG. 1, wherein (a) is a front view and (b) is a right side view.

9A is a perspective view showing a state before connecting the connector of FIG. 8 to a board-mounted connector, and FIG. 9B is a perspective view showing a state after the connection.

10A is a perspective view showing a state before the connector of FIG. 8 is connected to a relay mounting type connector, FIG. 10B is a perspective view showing a state after the connection, and FIG. It is.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view illustrating a case where a signal is transmitted by relay connection using the connector of FIG. 8;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view illustrating a case where a signal is transmitted via a board using the connector of FIG. 8;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view for explaining a modification in the case of transmitting a signal using the connector of FIG. 8;

FIG. 14 is a perspective view for explaining another modification in transmitting a signal using the connector of FIG. 8;

15A and 15B show a receptacle as a modified example of the connector of FIG. 2, wherein FIG. 15A is a front view, FIG. 15B is a plan view, and FIG. 15C is a right side view.

16A and 16B show a plug as a modification of the mating connector of FIG. 6, wherein FIG. 16A is a front view, FIG. 16B is a plan view, and FIG. 16C is a right side view.

17A and 17B show a cable connection plug as a modification of the connector of FIG. 8, wherein FIG. 17A is a front view, FIG.
(C) is a left side view, (d) is a bottom sectional view, and (e) is a side sectional view.

18A and 18B show a modification of the mating connector, wherein FIG. 18A is a front view, FIG. 18B is a bottom view, and FIG. 18C is a left side view.

19A and 19B show another modification of the mating connector, and FIG.
Is a front view, (b) is a bottom view, and (c) is a left side view.

FIG. 20 shows still another modification of the mating connector;
(A) is a front view, (b) is a bottom view, and (c) is a left side view.

21 shows an embodiment of an integrated part of a locator and a ground plate used in the modification of FIG. 20, (a) is a front view, (b) is a bottom view, and (c) is a left side view.

FIGS. 22A and 22B show other forms of the integrated part of the locator and the ground plate used in the modification of FIG. 20, wherein FIG. 22A is a front view, FIG. 22B is a bottom view, and FIG. .

FIG. 23 is an explanatory diagram showing an application example of the present invention.

FIG. 24 is a perspective view illustrating a usage pattern of a personal computer including a conventional connector.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Personal computer 14 Docking station 16 Port replicator 18 Peripheral equipment 19,21,22 Connector 23 Connector 23a Board mounting type connector 23b Relay mounting type connector 24 Connector 25 External monitor 26 Fitting part 27 Contact 27a Terminal part 27b Contact part 28 Insulator 29 Circuit board 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 Contact group 37 Terminal hole 41 Connector working as mating connector 46 Fitting part 48 Insulator 52 Connector working as mating connector 56 Fitting part 57 Contact 58 Insulator 59 Cable 61 Connector 62 Board pattern 63, 64 Relay connector 65 Transmission chip 66 Cable 71 Connection 72 Contact 73 Insulator 74 Bull sequence unit 75 locator 76 press-fit portion 77 connecting portions 78 the ground plate 79 connecting portion

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F-term (reference)

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A connector including a number of contacts having a terminal portion for connecting to a connection partner and a contact portion for connecting to a mating connector, and an insulator holding the contact, the connector being fitted to the mating connector. It has one fitting part to be combined, and forms a plurality of contact groups formed by collecting the contacts for each application inside the fitting part, and the plurality of contact groups can be collectively connected to a mating connector. A connector as described above, wherein the connector can be connected to the mating connector for each of the contact groups. 2. The method according to claim 2, wherein the interface circuit is divided into a plurality of circuit groups, and the contacts of the contact group correspond to the interface circuits of the circuit group. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the connector is connected by a connection. 3. An information processing apparatus comprising the connector according to claim 1.